They would ask me what actors I saw in the roles. I would tell them, and they’d say “Oh that’s interesting.” And that would be the end of it.
--Elmore Leonard, in 2000, on the extent of his input for Hollywood's adaptation of his novels

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Brian Falkner's "Brain Jack"

Brian Falkner lives on the sunny Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, where he writes YA novels, including The Tomorrow Code, The Project, and Brain Jack.

Here he shares some insights into the characters of Brain Jack as well as his idea for the actors who might bring them to life in a big screen adaptation:

The premise is simple. Who would I like to play the roles if my book was made into a movie?

This sounds like a fun game, I thought, and started thinking of who seemed to fit the bill of the characters as I had visualised them.

The book is Brain Jack and first up on my virtual casting couch is the main character Sam.

On the cover of the Australasian edition they portrayed him as a cool, tough, no-nonsense dude. But I never saw him like that. To me he was a geek. A bit of a klutz. Definitely not cool.

Jesse Eisenberg has been very successful in a geek role recently, but somehow he’s just not Sam to me.

So who else…

Here’s my list of the roles, with a brief description for those who haven’t read the book, and the actors who stepped into my mental casting lounge.

Sam Wilson, uber-hacker, teenager thrust into a world beyond his comprehension when he is recruited by the Department of Homeland Security. Played by Michael Cera.

“Dodge” Dodgerson, Sam’s mentor, a more experienced hacker, very talented, although lacking Sam’s natural abilities. A Brit. Played by Tom Hardy.

Vienna, another hacker, her place in the team usurped by the newcomer. A hard-as-nails rock chick from Chicago (You can take the Chick out of Chicago, but you can’t take Chicago out of the Chick!) Played by Pink.

Ranger Tyler, a hardass member of the Tactical Response Team. Too Cool for School, but still a good soldier. He sees the world in black and white but gradually comes to recognise shades of gray. Played by James Marsden.

Fargas, a bit of a doofus, but Sam’s best friend since school. Not a hacker, and completely out of his depth in the world the others are at home in. Addicted to neuro-videogames. Played by Seth Rogen.

John Jaggard, the leader of the Cyber Defense Division of Homeland Security. Played by Peter Weller.

And finally Swamp Witch, the representative from the Oversight Committee. A freak of nature, and the only hacker with the ability to keep an eye on the others. This was the only character that I did cast prior to writing the novel. Played by Madam Mim.

“Compared to a novel, a film is like an economy pizza where there are no olives, no ham, no anchovies, no mushrooms, and all you’ve got is the dough.”
--Louis de Bernières, author of Captain Corelli’s Mandolin